In my novel, The Atlas of Reds and Blues, I tried to capture the real world — the nonfiction world of the main character — from her earliest memories to the day she is shot by police and lays bleeding in her driveway. It’s a short novel. I tried to capture what she remembered, what she lived through — it was a pleasure to include such iconic moments as Woodstock…
I have two favorite bloopers from the writing process of From Unseen Fire. They’re both historical screw-ups — massive, glaring anachronisms. One of them, we caught in the midst of main edits. I headdesked pretty hard over it. It was one of those idiomatic phrases that just slipped out without my brain being aware of its passage — a dangerous thing for a writer, really, but let’s face it, something…
I. Love. Research. I mean, if you’ve read From Unseen Fire, you could probably guess that. As much as I’m a writer, I’m also a historian. It was my second major in undergrad, and my Master’s degree certainly relies heavily upon it as well. I live with my head as much in the past as the present, and while it’s not always the Roman past, for the past seven years,…
***Calling Debut Authors! Now Accepting Applications for the 2018 Debutante Ball! Read this post to learn more. Hurry! The deadline is July 28!*** This week the Debs are sharing things about themselves that might be weird, strange or that most people might not know. So, hi, I’m Jenni and… 1. When I was little, my mom would make our Halloween costumes. Here I am, as a flower. My older brother is a…
Calling Debut Authors! Now Accepting Applications for the 2018 Debutante Ball! Read this post to learn more. Hurry! The deadline is July 28! This week the Debs are sharing things about themselves that might be weird, strange or that most people might not know. I’ve been blogging for a long time, nearly since blogging was a thing. In 2005 I was especially prolific and my “About Me” page was a crazy list…
This week’s topic is about the Debs’ fears when it comes to someone reading our novel and writing about uncomfortable topics–anything from sex to family conflicts, and/or events pulled from real life. How do the Debs handle it? When I first began researching my novel, FEAST OF SORROW, one of the interesting things that I learned about the world of ancient Rome is that there are a lot of die-hard fans of…
Ooh, how fun! I get to be the guest author this week. I’ll just make myself cozy here. Why, yes, those cookies look lovely. I’ll have twelve. How could I say no to a cup of tea? Sure, go ahead and splash a dash of bourbon in there. Now, let’s settle in for a nice chat. For each of our launch weeks, we will be interviewed by our fellow Debs….
Congratulations to Susan Gloss on the launch of Vintage today! It’s a wonderful read filled with treasure for both women’s fiction fans and vintage enthusiasts, and it’ll make you want to rummage through your closet with a close friend to rediscover the stories behind the items we keep. We are so excited for you, Susan! There’s a difference between living our lives surrounded by things, and living it surrounded by…
Today we’re lucky to have historical mystery novelist Susanna Calkins with us. Susanna is serious about the history in her historicals—she’s a PhD! (She drops some research on us in just a minute!) Originally from Philadelphia, today Susanna lives in Chicago with her husband and two sons. She’s an educator and works in faculty development at a Chicagoland university. She was a debut(ante) not so long ago herself, with her…
